VIDEO: Sew chair covers yourself

You can cover old chairs with beautiful fabric. Chair covers hide everything old under pretty fabric. The chairs experience a considerable upgrade.

Fabric consumption for the chair covers

Before you sit down at the sewing machine, calculate the fabric consumption: First measure the width of the backrest and the height of your chair, then the height of the backrest up to the seat. Measure the size of the seat and the height from the seat to the floor.

The following parts determine your fabric consumption: backrest outside and inside, seat, front of the chair and two side surfaces from the seat to the floor. There are six parts from which you sew your chair covers yourself.

Add eight centimeters to the measurements for a loose throw plus one and a half centimeters of seam allowance.

Choose hard-wearing and washable fabrics that harmonize with the other textiles and furniture in your room. You can sew single-colored fabric yourself more easily. With patterned fabrics, you have to pay attention to patterns and motifs when cutting.

Draw the pattern

Draw the pattern true to scale on paper. It is easiest, provided the shape of the chair allows it, to leave the back, seat and front part in a single piece of fabric.

If your chair is fitted or has curved lines, assume rectangles, with the largest dimension being decisive. Cut rectangular parts for the chair covers, even if the backrest is rounded at the top. Loose-fitting chair dresses can be held together with a bow at the waist, just like real dresses.

If you are using patterned fabric, make sure the pattern is aligned with the center of the chair when you cut it.

How to sew a chair cover yourself

1. Put the parts together. Baste the seat and the backrest right sides together.
2. Attach the remaining parts. To be sure that everything fits, staple the other parts as well sew together.
3. Sew parts together. Use the sewing machine to sew all of the pieces together.
4. Sew in loops. Sew loops into the side seam near the seat pad.
5. Overcast seams. Miss the seams of the cover with a zigzag stitch or overlock.
6. Topstitch the hem. Fold in and topstitch the bottom hem twice.

With chair covers made of chic fabric, you can turn old chairs into handsome pieces of jewelry. With a simple seat cushion that matches the cover, a hard wooden chair becomes comfortable and invites you to linger.